Brant Peterson, a 5th generation Kansas farmer, responds to those who accuse him and his neighbors of squandering water. Peterson and other western Kansas farmers pump water from an underground aquifer to irrigate his crops, but their wells are drying up. (Lindsay Wise/McClatchy and Travis Heying/The Wichita Eagle)

Brant Peterson, a 5th generation Kansas farmer, responds to those who accuse him and his neighbors of squandering water. Peterson and other western Kansas farmers pump water from an underground aquifer to irrigate his crops, but their wells are drying up. (Lindsay Wise and Travis Heying/McClatchy)